Featured Artist – Agnes Copeland

Her artwork makes you feel so good. The reason is simple: elements that evoke emotion – color, texture, compositional harmony, whimsical humor – have been skillfully orchestrated into the signature works of Artist Agnes Copeland.

It is these same elements that provide her inspiration. An exhibiting artist since 1986, Agnes Copeland specializes in the art of collage. A seasoned world traveler, Agnes typically chooses her subjects from scenes of life that left indelible impressions during her years abroad. Her skilled use of color, composition – and “a good dose of whimsy” – defines her work as “creations that elicit joyful reactions to places and things”. And, she does so with a fresh, interpretive style that is distinctly her own.

Agnes’ dedication to her work requires considerable effort. She creates her art in a community studio, and therefore must transport all her materials to every work session. That includes the substrate on which she’ll build her collage, assorted jars of liquid media, brushes, tools, and a vast assortment of art papers from all over the world. She loves collecting and learning about distinctive art papers, many of which are made from different plant fibers and characterized by different decorative print methods.

Collage media depends heavily upon strong composition, design, texture and color. The process itself starts with a decision to use canvas, wood, paper, or other such surface to serve as a “ground”. Agnes then applies a liquid medium called gesso to seal and prepare the surface for adhesion. Then, the real fun begins! Agnes selects her art papers (organized by color and stored in plastic bags), and cuts them into her desired shapes. Her scene starts to emerge as she applies layers of shapes with a liquid acrylic medium. She will sometimes augment her collage with applications of acrylic inks or paint. She rarely completes her work in a single application, however, since some layers may need to dry before proceeding to her next task.

Returning to Art-A-Fair for her eighth season, Agnes claims to be much happier as an artist than at any other time in her life. And, the appeal of her artwork would certainly indicate that happiness is contagious! Look for Agnes this summer in Art-A-Fair’s 2016 season.